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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26290915">Shockwave</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/amandateaches/pseuds/amandateaches'>amandateaches</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Marvel Cinematic Universe</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Canon-Typical Violence, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/M, Slow Burn, Swearing</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 08:07:39</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,784</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26290915</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/amandateaches/pseuds/amandateaches</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>When you’re caught in an attack and get struck by an enemy shock wave, Bucky saves you and brings you to the Avengers for help. They quickly discover that the wave altered your genetic structure to send out energy bursts, energy bursts that you can’t control. Fearful of the damage you could cause, you refuse to be around anyone except superhumans Steve and Bucky, the latter of whom you form a quick, intense bond with while he teaches you to control your newfound powers.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>James "Bucky" Barnes/Reader</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>51</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Here it is, everyone, my first Bucky series. This idea has been my baby for a while, and I really hope you love it as much as I do. Warning, this chapter’s pretty dramatic. If you’re anything like my beta @hannahindie, you may be gasping throughout. Special thank you to her, as always, for giving me confidence in my words.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>It was miserably hot outside. You know, that muggy, scorching kind of hot, where everything’s awful, and you feel like you’re suffocating and melting at the same time? Yeah, it was that hot.</p>
<p>That’s why, despite you currently having the air blasting full power in your car, your thighs were still sticking to the letter, trickles of sweat dripping down your neck into the curve of your back.</p>
<p>“Damn humidity,” you grumbled, reaching a hand out to futilely adjust the vents again, hoping they’d be able to cool something other than just your face. Spoiler alert, they didn’t.</p>
<p>You were still miles away from home, and, at this rate, you were about 80% sure you weren’t going to last until you got there. Not unless you magically got a car fifteen years younger in the next two minutes.</p>
<p>You shifted in your seat, your uncomfortable sigh echoing throughout the vehicle. You were just about to adjust the vents again when a miracle happened and you spotted your salvation: an ice cream shop on the far corner. Nirvana in the heart of downtown.</p>
<p>You knew you shouldn’t stop, should head straight home and take a long, cold shower instead, but at this level of melting, you couldn’t resist.</p>
<p>Ice cream it was.</p>
<p>~</p>
<p>A very healthy serving of double chocolate chip swirl later, and you were feeling much, much better. By the time you left the ice cream shop, you barely even minded the heat, taking a quick left towards your parked car with a slight spring in your step.</p>
<p>That’s when you heard it.</p>
<p>At first, it sounded like the far off screeching of birds, totally normal and mundane, but you quickly realized those screeches were actually screams. Human screams. And, they were getting closer.</p>
<p>You whipped your head around in a panic, eyes scanning for the source of the sound. It wasn’t hard to find, a stampede of people rushing down the street, heading straight for you.</p>
<p>Your instinct was to turn, get out of their path, but when your gaze drifted up and you saw what they were running from, you froze in your tracks, a scream rising and dying in your throat.</p>
<p>It was hard, metal, like a tank with the sun glinting off it, but it was floating in mid air, casting a long shadow over the storm of people. That was reason enough to make it ominous, but the helmeted army pouring out of it the top of it and jumping into the crowd below really hammered the point home.</p>
<p>The arrival of the front edge of the stampede finally spurred you into action, and you spun on your heel, racing toward your car at a full sprint. When the ship moved over you, casting the street in darkness, you changed direction, choosing to divert from the hoard of people. You turned, racing down a nearby alleyway, and dropped down to hide yourself behind some nearby trash cans. That’s where you were, catching your breath, when you saw another group of about ten of the helmeted ship-men fall from the air, landing on their feet like damn acrobatic cats.</p>
<p>You held in your gasp, slapping a hand over your mouth so they wouldn’t see you, simultaneously crouching down even lower so your body was camouflaged more completely. </p>
<p>After a minute, you snuck a glance around the trashcan, watching as they began to fan out into the street, each heading in a different direction. Three of them stayed behind, moving deeper into the alley, and closer to you, to confer in a language that definitely wasn’t English. Their helmets blocked their faces, so your eyes moved down their bodies, landing on the curved sticks they were holding.</p>
<p>You assumed they were their weapons, but they didn’t look like any weapons you’d ever seen. They were made of wood, but there were streams of purple light wrapped around them, like energy, pulsing up and down.</p>
<p>As you watched, another young man ran from the street into the alley, looking for refuge, but he skidded to a stop when he saw the three men. Immediately, he turned to run back the other way, but he didn’t get a chance. Without even looking, the taller of the three attackers raised their energy spear, shooting a solid blast of light at the unfortunate bystander. It hit him like an explosion, sending him up into the air and back down to the ground, where he laid motionless, his eyes staring blankly ahead.</p>
<p>This time you couldn’t stifle your horror, the sound coming out as a small, mangled squeak, just loud enough to attract attention. All three of the helmeted men snapped their heads around, staring directly at you.</p>
<p>You didn’t know if it was instinct or adrenaline, but luckily your fight or flight kicked in, and you started moving, faster than you’d ever thought you could. You ran like the wind, further down the alley, away from them. You could hear booted footsteps pursuing you, but you just kept moving, knowing that stopping meant dying.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, luck was not on your side, and you ran straight into a dead end, a high fence blocking your escape. Damn alleys. For a second, you considered climbing it, but the footsteps were almost on you now. You’d never make it.</p>
<p>Time to try the fight. If you were going to die, the least you could do was try to take one or two of these helmeted psychos down with you. You grabbed a wide, wooden plank from where it was leaning against the brick wall beside you, and turned to face the oncoming assault with a wide stance. You racked your brain, trying to remember anything from that self defense class your friend had dragged you to last month, but all you could come up with was that the hot teacher smelled like coffee.</p>
<p>Jesus Christ, you were the worst student ever.</p>
<p>But, as luck would have it, somewhere in the very back of your mind, the scene from Miss Congeniality where Sandra Bullock kicks the hell out of Benjamin Bratt lived rent free. SING was all you had, so you guessed you were going with it. When the first stormtrooper wannabe arrived, you aimed for the solar plexus, hitting him square in the stomach as hard as you could. It caught him off guard and he staggered back, but the other two quickly arrived, surrounding you and effortlessly closing off your attack options.</p>
<p>That was quick. Still, you weren’t giving up that easy. You clutched your 2x4 to your chest like Rapunzel’s frying pan, desperately clinging onto whatever shred of hope you had that you’d find a way out of this. You weren’t going to lie, it definitely wasn’t looking good.</p>
<p>Backing up, you hit the fence, feeling the chain links dig into your back. You could hear your heart beating in your ears, and your mouth went dry, your eyes closing when they raised their spears in unison, waiting for the inevitable hit.</p>
<p>But, it didn’t come. Instead, you heard some grunting and struggling, followed by three abrupt crashes, in quick succession. You cracked one eye open gingerly, expecting to see the stormtroopers still surrounding you, but all you saw was their bodies, strewn across the dingy concrete.</p>
<p>Standing above them was a figure you instantly recognized and couldn’t believe you were staring at. Sergeant James Buchanan Barnes. The sight of him almost made your legs give out from relief, which was a reaction you assumed the former Winter Soldier didn’t get very often. Although, you doubted he’d welcome your reaction either, since it was the impulse to throw your arms around his neck as a thank you and just about never let go.</p>
<p>His head shot up, his blue-gray eyes studying you closely, scanning your body for any sign of injury. “You ok?”</p>
<p>“Yeah,” you nodded, still more than a little out of breath. You dropped your head, trying to regain control of your lungs, but you were way more than ok, because if Bucky Barnes was standing in front of you, that meant the rest of the Avengers couldn’t be that far behind. You dropped your plank on the ground, and raised your head again, your panting starting to fall back under control. “Who the hell were those guys?”</p>
<p>He shook his head, which proved to be an easy distraction when your brain decided to hyperfocus on the locks of hair falling into his face. “You don’t want to know. Come on, we gotta get out of here.”</p>
<p>He reached out and grabbed your hand, heat radiating instantly from his palm to yours. You trusted it without hesitation, gripping his hand tightly and letting him pull you into his side. He wrapped his arm around your waist, guiding you quickly back down the alleyway. </p>
<p>When you reached the end, he started to turn you towards the way you’d came, but a stormtrooper quickly blocked your way. He raised his spear, aiming the energy burst at you, but Bucky reacted lightning fast, effortlessly holding up his metal arm and blocking it. He pushed you behind his back, grabbing a gun from the holster on his thigh, and fired three quick, successive shots, felling the attacker before you even had a chance to scream.</p>
<p>Still keeping you covered, he stepped backwards, herding you up against the wall of a nearby building. Sandwiching you between the cool wall and his warm back, he whipped his head back and forth, keeping an eye out for incoming threats, which quickly manifested in the form of two more stormtroopers he had to swiftly shoot down. “Shit,” he snapped under his breath, so low only you could hear. Still keeping an eye on the street, he aimed the barrel of his gun toward the ground, bringing the watch on his wrist up to his mouth. “FRIDAY, I need help.”</p>
<p>A clear, Irish lilt rang out, steady and light. “Patching you through to Captain Rogers, Sergeant Barnes.”</p>
<p>The next voice you heard was an all-too familiar one, sparked by hours of hearing it on the news and in documentaries; although, in all that time, you’d never heard it quite this rattled. “Buck?” You’d never really heard one word that held so many questions within it more than that one. “You good?”</p>
<p>Bucky shook his head, a subconscious action you assumed, based on the fact that his friend was nowhere around to see it. Without even thinking, you put your hand on his back, partially to lend him strength and partially to reassure yourself, gripping the thick material of his tactical vest to prove that he was there. He pressed closer to you, moving a few steps to the side so the two of you were enclosed in a small alcove the intersecting buildings created, shielding you both from prying eyes and enemy fire. “Nah, we’re pretty boxed in here, Steve.”</p>
<p>“We?”</p>
<p>You could hear the confusion in his voice, but it was underlaid with something else, the tiniest shred of humor. You knew it must be some inside joke between the two of them, because you could practically hear Bucky’s eye roll in his sigh. “Yeah, Rogers, we. I found a civilian left behind in the landing zone.”</p>
<p>A civilian left behind, as in just the one, just the you? Oh, great. Of all times not to follow the stupid crowd. Everyone else had gotten away, but not you, no…The Winter Freaking Soldier had needed to come in to save you.</p>
<p>Captain America’s voice burst through again, like a lifeline for the last of your sanity to hold onto. “I’ll send Clint and Nat in the Quinjet for extraction. Just lay low.”</p>
<p>This time, Bucky’s sigh was so deep, you were pretty sure even the stormtroopers a mile away could hear it. “Oh, really? Thanks for the advice, Steve, I was just planning on walking up to the Frekrowsions, throwing down my gun, and surrendering. Glad you talked me out of it.”</p>
<p>Now it was Steve’s turn to sigh, cutting the call off with a muttered comment about Bucky’s sarcasm not being helpful right now. But, it made you smile. In the middle of the surreal craziness of watching people die and almost dying yourself just because you stopped for freaking ice cream at the wrong time, Bucky’s cynical wit gave you something tangible to hold onto, and so did his words. “Who are the Frekrowsions?”</p>
<p>It took a second for your words to register, but when they did, he turned to face you, his eyes finally, truly meeting yours for the first time since he’d saved you. He watched you for a second, and then his mouth quirked upward slightly. “You really want to know?”</p>
<p>Your hands had fallen from his back when he turned, so you crossed them across your chest, leaning away from him slightly to rest against the wall, fatigue starting to hit you. “Well, since they almost killed me at least twice today, I feel like I should stop calling them stormtroopers.”</p>
<p>He laughed at that, the chuckle barely audible but definitely there. “I don’t know, sounds pretty accurate to me.” He paused, groaning when your expression compelled him to continue. “They’re an alien race that’s been on our radar a few years. Slipped in through an interstellar portal.”</p>
<p>Your reaction could only be described as part shock, part exasperation. “Again? Didn’t you guys do this whole alien invasion thing before? What you didn’t learn from the last time?”</p>
<p>By the way his eyes widened, you knew he hadn’t been expecting that response, but he couldn’t hide the amusement on his face. “Hey, to be fair, I wasn’t really involved in that one.” He threw a glance back over his shoulder, checking the deserted area before looking back at you. “What’s your name?”</p>
<p>“Y/N,” you replied, although you were amazed you still had the sense to have a conversation with those eyes staring directly at you. “And, you’re Sergeant Barnes.”</p>
<p>You hadn’t said it like a question, but he answered you anyway. “Bucky. It’s just Bucky.”</p>
<p>“Bucky,” you echoed, as the sound of a low rumbling broke the silence surrounding the two of you. You looked up, following Bucky’s gaze to a sleek, black jet landing about 100 yards away, on the other side of the alien ship, an alien ship that was more than twice the jet’s size.</p>
<p>Bucky, however, didn’t seem bothered by that fact. He reached across his body and took your hand, pulling it securely against his chest, anchoring you once more to his side. “That’s our ride. It’ll get you out of the area to somewhere safe.”</p>
<p>Without any additional warning, he began to run, and you rushed to keep up. He took the direct route, skirting around the alien ship. He was careful to make sure he was between you and it at all times, but it almost didn’t seem necessary. The ship looked abandoned, like all of its occupants had moved on to torment another part of the city, or, more hopefully, had been subdued by the rest of the Avengers.</p>
<p>With newfound optimism, your eyes found the Quinjet in the distance, and you could see two occupants through the window waving at the two of you. Bucky increased his jog slightly, and you worked to copy him, feeling a surge of energy at being so close to safety, but then you saw a hint of movement out of the corner of your eye.</p>
<p>Bucky’s full attention was on the jet, so you turned your head to look past him, just in time to see a Frekrowsion pop up from a hidden compartment in the ship, his spear aimed directly at the two of you.</p>
<p>“Bucky!” you yelled, and he reacted instantly, turning to make sure his shoulders were fully blocking you so he’d take the hit, even as his eyes still scanned for the source of your warning. He didn’t see it, so you grabbed the back of his vest, pulling him down just as the alien fired, the bolt of electricity flying mere inches over your heads.</p>
<p>His chest now facing yours, rising and falling in sync, Bucky met your eyes, the surprise in his gaze both frenzied and full of worry, but he raised his gun behind him, firing blindly. Realizing he was out of bullets, he swore and reholstered his gun, slipping his hands under the back of your legs and hoisting you into his arms as he broke out into a full sprint.</p>
<p>With you in his arms instead of running beside him, his speed increased significantly, and he made it to the Quinjet in under ten seconds flat, jumping inside with a bounding leap. “Clint, Nat, let’s go!”</p>
<p>“Not an option,” Clint responded, standing now beside the seats instead of sitting in them. He gestured over his shoulder with a nod of his head, loading an arrow into his quiver as Natasha loaded up a rifle. Bucky set you down gently, the frown on his face deepening, and took three long strides over to them, his hand on his hip. </p>
<p>You, on the other hand, stood there awkwardly, trying not to fangirl over seeing two more members of the Avengers standing in front of you. Maybe this wasn’t really happening. Maybe it was all just some weird, ice cream-induced fantasy dream, but the sound of the anger in Bucky’s voice made it very clear that was as real as it could get. </p>
<p>“What the hell do you mean not an option?”</p>
<p>“Take it down a notch, Buck. We’re surrounded,” Natasha said calmly, somehow maintaining her composure even in the swirling tornado of tension. “There’s no clear path to take off. They must’ve been hiding, lying in wait for the jet, because they’re coming from all sides now.”</p>
<p>“Then, run them over!” Bucky growled, an outburst that you could already tell was uncharacteristic for him, an assumption driven home by the way Natasha’s eyes widened in surprise. Bucky’s face fell, filled with remorse, but when he looked over at you, his jaw clenched, and he stepped closer to the other two, dropping his voice so you couldn’t hear. Whatever he was saying, Natasha was looking sympathetic but unwavering, and Clint was just smirking.</p>
<p>“No can do, Barnes,” he announced, his smile widening as he glanced over at you, nodding his head in a greeting. “As much as I appreciate your…argument, we’re backed into a corner here. Nat and I called for backup, but we can’t take off until we clear the field. We’re going to have to hold them off.”</p>
<p>Bucky looked over at you and his face dropped, the mask falling to reveal the depth of his desperation for the first time since you’d met him. It terrified you. “Bucky?”</p>
<p>He quickly covered the worry up, smiling warmly as he walked back over to you and placed his hands on your elbows. “Don’t worry, we’ll be fine. We’ve done the whole alien thing before, right?”</p>
<p>You’d believe him if his smile was even close to reaching his eyes. “But, what if…”</p>
<p>“You’re going to be fine,” he echoed, firmly, resolutely, not leaving any room for arguments. “Just stay here. You’ll be safe in the jet. Nat, Clint, and I can handle it. It’s our job. Don’t worry, Y/N, we do this kind of stuff all the time.”</p>
<p>You wanted to wish him luck, but he turned and grabbed a gun off the rack, gone before you even had the chance, closing the loading door behind him. Left alone in the empty jet, you whispered your words into the empty air instead. “Stay safe.”</p>
<p>Suddenly feeling cold with him gone, you wrapped your arms a little tighter around your torso. It was like something was missing without him, like your body was going into the shock his presence had been warding off. You felt more vulnerable, and not just physically. Shivering, you tried to shake it off, moving instead to the window to stare out at the scene unfolding outside.</p>
<p>Bucky, Nat, and Clint were more than outnumbered, but they were holding their own, striking down helmeted aliens right and left, working in tandem like a well-oiled machine. Your eyes drifted across the landscape, and you noticed something small pop out from one of the doors of the nearby building. Curious, you looked closer, and your heart almost stopped when you realized what you were looking at: a child, walking right into the middle of the disaster movie. He was just a tiny boy, couldn’t have been more than three or four, clutching a blanket to his chest. It looked like he’d been crying, and that about broke you.</p>
<p>You looked around frantically, trying to find any sign of a parent who would scoop him up and carry him out of there, but he was alone. Still a good distance away from where Bucky and the others were holding off the advancing storm of attackers, he was safe for now, but he was headed in exactly the wrong direction. Realizing the urgency, you raised your hands, banging on the window to try to attract Bucky’s attention, but he couldn’t hear you, the noise drowned out by the cacophony around him. Unfortunately, that noise didn’t stop one of the alien soldiers from noticing the boy, changing direction from the Avengers to intercept him.</p>
<p>You knew you had to do something, and you had to do it now. Without thinking about the danger or the repercussions that might come, you let instinct take over, rushing to the back of the plane and slamming on the button you’d seen Bucky press to raise the door. It started to lower, and you crouched down to rush out, speeding towards the kid with no real plan. You just knew you were the closest, the only hope of reaching him before the Frekrowsion.</p>
<p>Adrenaline was propelling you forward now, your heartbeat pounding as tunnel vision took over. You could hear Bucky yell your name in the background, but you didn’t stop, scooping up the boy just in time. The alien was just a few feet away, his spear raised, so you did the only thing you could, the thing Bucky had done for you so many times already. You turned, shielding him with your body, your arms securely cradling him as the energy blast hit your back head on, throwing you up, into the air.</p>
<p>Somehow, you were able to twist as you flew, cushioning your precious cargo and landing on your side, pain radiating from every inch of your body. You could hear Bucky’s screams growing closer, the sound of your name becoming more frantic with each passing second, but even that couldn’t anchor you. The darkness won out, pulling you under to an unending, excruciating oblivion.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>In the aftermath of the attack, you wind up unconscious in a hospital bed surrounded by Avengers. Upon waking up, you feel fine, but all of you quickly discover that is not, in fact, the case.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A memory tugged ever so softly at the edges of your consciousness. </p><p>It was fuzzy, out of focus, but it was insistent, pulling you out of the inky darkness you’d found a home in.</p><p>Eyes, clouded grey with fear. Whispered pleas, hurried and frantic. Four words, repeated over and over, keeping you from slipping away. “Stay with me. Please.”</p><p>You could see the images so clearly, playing on a loop in your head, but you couldn’t quite reach them. They were far off, clouded, but the voices breaking through them weren’t, tugging you even further out of your haze.</p><p>“I don’t understand it, Tony. I’ve never seen anyone survive a blast like that before. It should be impossible.”</p><p>“Yeah, Bruce, because aliens invading Earth seems so possible every time that happens.”</p><p>“Tony…”</p><p>“Look, she’s here, okay, so that obviously means she survived. It’s clearly possible. Let’s just figure out how.”</p><p>There was a pause and then a long sigh. “But, a blast like that, that much energy, the damage it must’ve done…”</p><p>Damage. The word, and its implications, began careening through your mind, making you gasp, albeit involuntarily. It was soft, but it was enough to quiet the voices in the room, a new one quickly replacing them.</p><p>“Y/N? Can you hear us?”</p><p>It was a woman’s voice, close, warm. You blinked your eyes open, focusing on the soft smile of Dr. Helen Cho. Another face you recognized from the documentaries. You were really starting to hate those documentaries. “Where am I?”</p><p>Her smile widened, and she held up a small penlight, shining it in both of your eyes. “You’re at the medical facility in our compound. Upstate New York.”</p><p>New York. How could you have gotten to New York without remembering? You wracked your brain, but then those whispered words came back to you, fragmented but bright as day, and you knew. “Bucky.”</p><p>Dr. Cho’s smile softened the same way your voice did, and she nodded. “He got to you after you…” She paused, looking back at the others to find the right words. “After you were hit. He carried you out of the rubble, and the team brought you here.”</p><p>You furrowed your brow, trying to remember, but everything was still too much of a blank. “Is he?”</p><p>She nodded her head towards the corner, anticipating your question. “He’s here. He never left.”</p><p>Your eyes moved instantly, shifting on their own accord until they found Bucky’s in a sea of bright lights and blinking screens. His eyes flashed when you made contact, blinking once but otherwise staying unreadable. He did, however, straighten up from where he was leaning against the wall, placing the foot he’d been resting against it back onto the ground.</p><p>He was staring silently at you, obviously waiting for you to speak again, so you did, saying the first thing that popped into your mind. “Is the kid okay?”</p><p>His eyebrows raised slightly, surprised by your question, but the edges of his mouth tugged upwards and he nodded. “He’s fine. Not a scratch on him.”</p><p>“Thanks to you,” Tony said, stepping forward. He moved between you and Bucky, so you tried to look around him, but Bucky shot you a reassuring grin and looked Tony’s way, signaling for you to follow his lead.</p><p>“Maybe not the smartest decision,” he continued, gesturing towards where you had ended up. “But, a damn gutsy one. Although, next time you might want to duck first.”</p><p>Bucky’s face hardened, and he tightened his fist. “She’s a hero, Stark…”</p><p>You interrupted him, your voice quiet and unsteady, but clear enough to break through, stopping the brewing fight. “When can I go home?”</p><p>All of the eyes in the room turned to you, but their somber expressions did little to bolster your confidence. “I am going home, aren’t I?”</p><p>Bucky took a step towards you, but Tony just hung his head, leaving you to turn to Bruce. He looked almost pained watching you, wringing his hands and taking a deep breath to respond. “Honestly, we’re not sure.”</p><p>You began to feel panic prickle up your spine, and you used your forearms to push yourself up to a sitting position, accepting Dr. Cho’s help to get the rest of the way. “What does that mean, you’re not sure?”</p><p>The three of them exchanged a glance, some kind of silent communication passing between them, and you knew this wasn’t the first time they were discussing this. Tony finally sighed, ending the standoff and turning to answer your question. “From all appearances, you look fine. You don’t have any serious injuries, all of the tests come back normal. Theoretically, you should be able to go home.”</p><p>Theoretically. “But?”</p><p>Another sigh, this one even heavier than the last, sprinkled with sympathy, but filled with frustration. “The shockwave isn’t like anything we’ve ever seen before. It’s done more damage than we first thought. It seems to have somehow…altered your genetic structure.”</p><p>A foreboding sense of horror washed over you, and your eyes found Bucky’s once again, shaking your head, trying to convince yourself it couldn’t be true. His slow nod back told you otherwise.</p><p>That was the moment you really lost it. Panic flowed through your veins like ice and bubbled straight up to the surface, seeping out of you in waves. “No, no, that’s…no.” You stood up from the bed quickly, flipping your palms out, fingers spread wide. “See, I’m fine, completely normal. My genetic structure is just as…geneticy as it always is.”</p><p>You stepped forward, but Dr. Cho rushed around the bed to intercept you. “Y/N, please, you should really rest.”</p><p>You shook your head, more insistently this time, your hand gestures growing more wild. “No, I told you, I’m fine! Whatever tests you ran, you can just run them again, right? I’m sure you’re…”</p><p>“Y/N.”</p><p>You froze at the warning in Bucky’s voice, spinning your head around to reveal the three seasoned superheroes backing away slowly, their bodies tensed. But, they weren’t looking at you, they were looking at your hands.</p><p>Trailing your eyes down, you felt your pulse quicken with every breath, every millisecond. But, the real fear didn’t come until your eyes finally reached your hands, and you saw purple static streaming in the air around your fingertips. Bands of energy, crackling and fluctuating, and all of it was coming from you.</p><p>That’s when your heart really started beating out of control. “What is…what’s happening to me?!”</p><p>Dr. Cho stepped closer, holding her hands up warily like she was approaching a wounded animal. “Y/N, please, just get back in bed…”</p><p>“No!” you screamed, throwing your arms down towards the ground to keep her away.</p><p>That’s when everything went to hell.</p><p>All of it must’ve happened in just seconds, but, to you, it felt like an eternity. Time slowed to a standstill as you watched the room blast apart, a giant wave of purple pushing back everything and everyone in its path.</p><p>The power from the blast knocked you back into the medical cart, but all you could focus on was what it was doing to the others. It didn’t discriminate, cutting through each of them like a blade, sending all four of them flying up into the air and back into the walls with sickening crunches.</p><p>You could feel yourself scream but no sound came out, the shock of what you’d just done hanging too heavy. It was surreal, like a movie, but you weren’t watching it, you were living it, had caused it, caused the destruction laid out in front of you.</p><p>Tony stirred first, pushing himself out from underneath the rubble with a loud curse and moan. Bucky followed, immediately moving towards you, but you backed away clutching your hands to your chest and shaking your head. “No, no. Stay where you are. I’ll just hurt you again.”</p><p>Bucky slowed, but he kept advancing, holding one of his hands out gingerly towards you. “Hey, hey,” he whispered, cocking a smile that made his eyes shine. ““You can’t hurt me, Y/N. Super soldier, remember?”</p><p>And, just like that, a wave of calm washed over you, because you could feel his confidence, his gentleness. You knew he really believed what he was saying, because if anyone had been there it was him. He wanted to help you, to take care of you, and you trusted him.</p><p>You reached your hand out to brush against his fingers, but, before you could grasp the lifeline he was offering, Tony drew him back, his voice suddenly filling with alarm. “Barnes, the doctor.”</p><p>Bucky spun around to find Tony and Bruce kneeling by Dr. Cho, who was still lying unconscious across the room. He inhaled sharply and stepped back from where you stood, rooted to your spot by the medical cart, disbelief still coursing through you.</p><p>The three of them stayed huddled by her side for a moment until she started to stir, and you let out a breath you didn’t even know you were holding. Bruce helped her up, casting a watchful glance your way as he ushered her out of the room, while Tony and Bucky turned back to you.</p><p>Bucky made his way back to you without hesitation, placing his hands on your shoulders and capturing your gaze. “Hey, don’t worry, she’s going to be fine. Bruce will take care of her.” You tried to shut your eyes, to disassociate, but he protested. “Look at me, it’s not your fault, okay? None of this was your fault.”</p><p>“Barnes is right,” Tony said quickly, breaking his silence. “We’re going to help you, Y/N.”</p><p>He started to walk toward you when Bucky turned to face him, but you freaked out, grabbing Bucky’s arm and moving to hide behind him. “No,” you whispered, placing your forehead against his back and shaking it slowly. “I’ll hurt him.”</p><p>Bucky reached across, placing his hand over yours and squeezing softly. “I got you. It’s gonna be okay.”</p><p>Gently, he lifted your fingers, dropping your hand and moving to meet Tony halfway. He shook his head, grabbing his shoulder and leading him away, where the two of them began to confer quietly, something Bucky seemed to do a lot around you. You made a mental note to tell him how infuriating that was.</p><p>After a few moments, Tony nodded and Bucky turned back to you, his encouraging smile finding its way back to his eyes. “Y/N, I know you’re scared. Scared is an understatement. I’m sure you’re fucking terrified. But, I can promise you, you’re not going to hurt anyone else. I’m not going to let that happen, okay?”</p><p>You nodded, and he reached his hand out again, holding it out to you just as he had before. “I know I can’t make you do anything, and I know you probably think you’re past saving, but we can help you, Y/N, I know we can. If you stay here, if you trust me, I swear to you, our team, we’ll do everything in our power to fix you. We will find a cure.” He extended his hand out even further, waiting for you to make the choice. “Will you let us try?”</p><p>You stared at him for a moment, your heart vibrating as you thought about your options. You could very easily say no, run away from it all, and go hide in the mountains where you couldn’t hurt anyone else, but then you thought about your family and friends, of any chance you had of ever being able to see them again without blasting them across the room. Staring into Bucky’s eyes, you knew there was only one thing you could do. The choice was clear and you made it without any hesitation.</p><p>You grabbed his hand.</p>
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